Sunday, February 24, 2013

My picture reflects just a little of the bemusement Cameron must be feeling, alongside his turkey of a candidate, as Thursday approaches. The Rennard allegations are ugly and it's hard to believe Clegg knew nothing about something which apparently was common knowledge in senior Lib Dem circles. But it seems not to be affecting the chances of candidate Mike Thornton: the latest Populous poll for The Times shows Lib Dems flourishing, (with their previous poll shown in brackets):

We see Clegg's party climbing by 2% but the Tories plunging by 6%- very possibly reflecting voter dismay at Osborne's embarrassing loss of his much prized triple A rating. This event, comparable to the Tory's 1992 'Black Wednesday', blows a huge hole in the Cameron-Osborne's credibility. After Black Wednesday their ratings collapsed and stayed collapsed until 2005; it won't happen this time but it is, to a degree, as significant as Eastleigh. Martin Kettle, in his splendid piece on Friday argued the by-election's importance is pivotal.

About Me

I was born in the Welsh borderlands and grew up in Shrewsbury. Then to Aberystwyth University before working in the admin class of the civil service for a couple of unhappy years. Then got job at Manchester University which I loved. I became Director Extra-Mural Studies 1986-91 and then had a stroke while out jogging. Retired on medical grounds but still teach and write a good deal. Recently took up a part-time position in politics at Liverpool Hope University. Why Skipper? Legacy of captaining a post-graduate cricket team at university.